Virus Crossfire

[Dave Aitel <dave () immunityinc com>]

*Many of you probably already read this article by Rob Lemos.

http://www.securityfocus.com/news/11379
*"A virus that spreads from PCs to mobile devices has become the focus 
of a power play between the antivirus industry and the relatively young 
Mobile Antivirus Research Association, which obtained the only sample of 
the program."

*So some funny things in the following statement from the group who 
started it:
1. What was the bullying? Is this a child's playground or what?
2. I'm not sure what jurisdiction these people are in - I imagine 
several - but I'm not aware of any US law that makes distributing 
malware illegal in any fashion as long as the people involved all know 
what it is.

http://www.mobileav.org/index.html
"""
*Currently, several security experts and antivirus companies are applying
for a formal exchange agreement with MARA in order to get a sample of
the Crossover Trojan. However, a small number have refused to sign any
agreement, and have made comments to the effect that, "we're the
experts, not you, so hand it over right now." Some of them have even
tried to bully individual members into bypassing the proper protocol.
That is unfortunate, since it would be illegal to distribute malware
without a signed agreement. There has to be a chain of custody in place.
"""

In any case, the whole thing is funny. Recently I've had people call me 
and ask me if this sort of service is what the Immunity Partner's 
program is, which it's not. What people are really looking for is 
http://www.offensivecomputing.net/ . It's like an anti-virus company, 
but without that fake "We're better than you" attitude. Valsmith should 
make this their official motto.

-dave